He was a shitbag, not a troll. It's not as if he wasn't sincere, because he was. Someone who shouts racial supremacy on youtube is not necessarily a troll. An attempt at trolling must feign sincerity, and it must be obvious to some but not to others. Those "others" who buy into the troll's game only serve to feed the troll and the drama that ensues.

Personally, I think you have managed to split a single hair into about 73 pieces.

I don't think you're a troll. Not once. And this is coming from a guy that has been told I am trolling a lot, when it was news to me. What did you say @Jennifer? "ENTPs seems to more regularly phrase things in ways other considered "trolly." It's kind of like they have a sixth sense on how to phrase things in a way that will instigate a response. "

I've been accused of trolling, though might have to do with the other person losing an argument or being close minded to other points of view.

I guess, sometimes, people also like to be seen as having trolled; because to them it means that they are witty and smart enough to have fooled someone. Or something?

So, is an unsuccessful or borderline retarded troll attempt still considered 'trolling'? Or does it have to be successful? I guess it'd have to be successful, because if not it's just 'baiting.'

But where's the pride in baiting? I guess if someone takes pride in.. ... saying something, then it'd be prideful.

Man. Trolling is hard work.

Trolling an individual to create a response that makes them look like a fool is a simple form of baiting. If someone manages to make themselves look enough like a fool, maybe they'll leave. I don't know if there's any pride in that accomplishment since I've never done it.

"Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the mouth." Mike Tyson
“Culture?” says Paul McCartney. “This isn't culture. It's just a good laugh.”

I guess, sometimes, people also like to be seen as having trolled; because to them it means that they are witty and smart enough to have fooled someone. Or something?

So, is an unsuccessful or borderline retarded troll attempt still considered 'trolling'? Or does it have to be successful? I guess it'd have to be successful, because if not it's just 'baiting.'

But where's the pride in baiting? I guess if someone takes pride in.. ... saying something, then it'd be prideful.

Man. Trolling is hard work.

Haha, yes. And this thread is exhausting. I should just stay away altogether.

Alas. See, the way I look at it, is if there's some troller or douchebag in a big enough community, often other members, or perhaps one, will gang up on him/her and deliver some sweet forum verbal street justice.

Now of course, I am biased, as this is how I like to handle trouble makers. Let the community police itself when it can. But this is a rather bold position and I absolutely respect the moderators of this site (so far!) as it is, afterall, their house and I am a guest.

Even treebob, we disagree on just about everything so far, but I respect their decision to ban me and after making a tiny effort to understand why, I gave up and let go, but I don't respect their reasoning. And no, I'm not trying to flame anything here. Just an observation.

A troll is no different to any other Usenet posting. That needs to be stressed.

Any article that you decide to write should be written with a view to it actually being read by large numbers of people. Simply X-posting to large numbers of irrelevant newsgroups is not creative trolling - it is just spam and should be avoided.

The experienced troller spends time carefully choosing the right subject and delivering it to the right newsgroup. With trolls, delivery is just as important as the subject.

Start the troll in a reasonable and erudite manner. You have to engage your readers' interest and draw them in.

Never give too much away at the start - although a brief abstract with hints of what's to come can work wonders.

Construct your troll in a manner to make it readable. Use short paragraphs and lots of white space. Keep line length below eighty characters. Use a liberal amount of emphasis and even the occasional illustration.

A good rule of thumb is that as your troll becomes more and more ludicrous put extra effort into the presentation - this keeps the mug punter confused. Let confusion and chaos be your goal.

Notice that the explanation refers to usenet. This material is very old, it was written long before other forums became popular. However, being old does not mean it is outdated.

A "mug punter" is someone who is easily confused.

The article refers to a "troller," and this is actually correct. A troll is a posting, a troller posts the troll.

Using lots of white space in a troll is not necessary, as the most successful troll post in history - which I read years ago - was pretty much just one long rant paragraph. What mattered in that one was the idea that it was supposedly written by an American complaining about America. Politics pretty much trumps every other rule.

"Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the mouth." Mike Tyson
“Culture?” says Paul McCartney. “This isn't culture. It's just a good laugh.”